Packaging



arch H6, 1948. c. M. CARSON PACKAGING Filed Aug. 27, 194$ SPm/GE191/565? Spa/v6: R0555? I N VEN TOR:

QAREA/C: M. CARsa/v A TTORN E YS Patented Mar. 16, 1948 PACKAGINGClarence M. canon, CWO Falls, 01110, as-

lignor to Wingfoot Corporation, Akron, Ohio, a corporation of DelawareApplication August 27, 1946, Serial No. 698,310

'iOlaims. 1

This invention relates to a process of packaging which is particularlyadapted to the packaging of soft perishable fruits and vegetables. suchas peaches, tomatoes, pears, etc., or frangible articles, such as lightbulbs, etc. The object to be packaged is pocketed between two heatedplies of thermostretchable, heat-scalable wrappin material and issimultaneously cradled in a box or other supporting frame. Manyvariations in the process will be suggested by reference to the morecomplete description which follows in which the accompanying drawingsare referred to.

In the drawings:

Fig. l is a diagrammatic elevation. of the equipment for packagingarticles as herein described;

Fig. 2 utilizes the same equipment and illustrates diagrammatically asomewhat modified operation;

Fig. 3 is an elevation in section of an article wrapped according to theprocess illustrated in Fig. 1; and

Fig. 4 is a section which shows diagrammatically the package resultingfrom the operation shown in Fig. 2.

Essentially. the fruit or other article tobe wrapped is placed betweentwo sheets of heated wrapping material which are passed between spongerubber belts or other resilient pressure means together with the framein which the article is to be cradled. The belts stretch or mold thesheets around the article and preferably also fas ten them to the frame.A preferred wrapping material is rubber hydrochloride film althoughother films which perform the function of the invention may be used.such as films of vinyl products, polyethylene, and other heat-scalable,thermostretchable plastics, etc.

Fig. 1 comprises two sponge rubber belts i and 2, each of which isseveral inches thick. The sponge rubber may be fastened to any suitablebase 3 which is preferably not stretchable, such as cotton, metal or thelike. The belts are moved in the direction of the arrows, and atsubstantially the same speed. Two rolls of Pliofilm (rubberhydrochloride film manufactured by The Goodyear Tire 8: Rubber Company)5 and 8 are shown for the purpose of illustration. These films, as theypass from the storage rolls, are heated by contact with the hot rollers8 and 8 in order to make them scalable and stretchable.

As the two films l2 and i3 enter the bite between the sponge rubberrollers, the article I4, which is a fruit, vegetable or anything elsethat is to be wrapped, is placed between the two films, and the box orframe it is placed under the bottom film. This frame may be of wood,boxboard, plastic or the like. The article It and frame ii are soarranged that they enter the bite together so that the pressure of thebelts will stretch the films around the article and simultaneously pushthe article down into the frame and seal the edges of the film to it. Toinsure a strong bond between the films and the frame, the upper edge ofthe frame is coated with a material ii to which the heated rubberhydrochloride is adherent. Figs. 1 and 3 illustrate how the film maythus be made to adhere to the top edge of the frame. After beingdelivered from the belts, excess film will be trimmed from the edges ofthe box.

Fig. 3 shows a somewhat similar operation but shows the use ofmulti-cellular frames. Both stock rolls of Pliofilm are located abovethe sponge rubber belts 20 and 2|. The frames 22 each hold threearticles 23 in the longitudinal direction and may hold several articleslaterally. The articles may be placed in a jig or fixture and carried inthis to the correct position between the films 24 and 25. Alternatively,the articles may be fed through tubes to the correct position betweenthe films, and the tubes may be equipped for automatically delivering asingle article at a time I and simultaneously from each of the tubes.

In the illustration additional frames 26, the same area, etc., as theframes 22, are placed over the packaged fruit after it passes out frombetween the belts. These frames 26 may be of the same height as theframes 22 or may be taller or shorter. These additional frames preventthe fruit from being damaged by pressure from above. The frames 22 and26 may be united by any suitable means, such as by taping them togetherwith tapes or by placing a rubber band around them. The films 24 and 25might be united to the edges of the two frames with s'ufiicient tenacityto hold them together. Any suitable means for holding the framestogether will be satisfactory.

The two films need notbe of the same composition. They may both beplastic but of difierent stretchability. For instance, the upper filmmay have a very high modulus so that it is stretched but little, and thesheets may be united near the top of the article. A somewhat similareffect may be produced by using plastic films of the same generalcomposition but by having the lower film thinner and thus more easilystretched than the upper film or by having it plasticized so that itstretches more readily. The elasticity may also v be controlled byheating the lower film more than 55 the upper. Thus, the two films maybe stretched a different amount as they enclose the article and arepressed down into the frame.

Figs. 3 and 4 show the rim of supporting film between the article andthe frame which forms a resilient support which holds each article outof contact with other articles and absorbs shocks to which the packageis subjected in transportation. The films fit snugly against the articleso that there is no danger of the surface being damaged by abrasion.Furthermore, the article is so supported that although it is able to bemoved up and down somewhat as it is iostled about when moved from oneplace to another, it is not given sufficient play to permit bruising bybeing bumped on the bottom of the frame.

It is thus seen that the invention is of rather general application andis not limited to the examples given. If the frames are multi-cellular,the films will ordinarily be united only to the outer walls and not tothe partitions between the cells. The films may be transparent orpigmented. They may be of any color.

Although other heat-sealable, thermostretchable films may be used,rubber hydrochloride film is preferred. This is because other plasticsmust be maintained in a heated condition to make them scalable andstretchable; but rubber hydrochloride, once heated, may be stretched orsealed by pressure at any time for a considerable period thereafter,even though cooled to about 100 F. Thus, even though the rubberhydrochloride cools appreciably between the heating rolls and the spongerubber belts, it is stretched and sealed between the belts. Machinesdesigned for use with other heat-scalable and thermostretchable filmsmust be enclosed so as to maintain the films at the required temperatureuntil the stretching and sealing have been completed. The machines maybe designed so that the surface speed of the heating rollers is the sameas the surface speed of the sponge belts, or faster or slower dependingupon whether prestretching or preshrinking of a film already stretchedis desired. The apparatus employed may be changed in many respects.

What I claim is:

1. The process of packaging an article between two layers of wrappingmaterial which comprises placing the article between them, placing aframe against the outside surface of one of the layers so that itsperimeter surrounds the article, and then passing the assembly betweenresilient pressure means to press the layers of wrapping materialtogether around the article and to press at least a portion of thecovered article down into' the frame.

2. The process of packaging an article between two layers of wrappingmaterial, opposing surfaces of which are heat-scalable, which comprisesheating the layers of the wrapping material, placing the article betweenthem, placing a frame against the outside surface of one of the layersso that its perimeter surrounds the article, and then passing theassembly between resilient pressure means to press the layers ofwrapping material over opposite surfaces of the article and to seal thelayers together around the article and to press at least a portion ofthe covered article down into the frame.

3. The process of packaging an article between two layers ofheat-sealable and thermostretchable wrapping material which comprisesheating the layers of the wrapping material, placing the article betweenthem, placing a frame against the outside surface of one of the layersso that its perimeter surrounds the article, and then passing theassembly between resilient pressure means to stretch the layers ofwrapping material around opposite surfaces of the article and to sealthem together around the article and to press at least a portion of thecovered article down into the frame.

4. The process of packaging a plurality of articles between two layersof heat-scalable and thermostretchable wrapping material which comprisesheating the layers of the wrapping material, placing the articlesbetween the layers with the articles arranged in a definite pattern,placing a frame provided with cells of the same pattern against theoutside surface of one of the layers so that the perimeters of therespective cells surround the respective articles, and then passing theassembly between resilient pressure means to press the respective layersover opposite surfaces of the articles and to press and seal themtogether around the articles and to press at least a portion of each ofthe resulting covered articles down into its respective cell in theframe.

5. The process of packaging an article between two layers of wrappingmaterial which comprises placing the article between them, placing aframe against the outside surface of one of the layers so that itsperimeter surrounds the article, then passing the assembly betweenresilient pressure means to press the layers of wrapping materialagainst opposite surfaces of the article and to press the layerstogether at the perimeter of the article and to press at least a portionof the covered article down into the frame, and then placing a frame ofsubstantially the same perimeter on top of the first-mentioned framewith the layers of wrapping material held between the two frames.

6. The process of packaging an article between two films ofheat-scalable and thermostretchable wrapping material which comprisesheating the films, placing an article between them, placing a frameunderneath the lower of the films and then passing the assembly betweenresilient pressure means so as to simultaneously stretch the films overthe article, seal the films together around the perimeter of thearticle, and push at least a

